Adelaide United v Gold Coast United preview

An intriguing event pits second against third in the A-Leagueâ€™s Week 16 opener on Friday night.

An intriguing event pits second against third in the A-Leagueâ€™s Week 16 opener on Friday night.

Adelaide United returned to form with a 2-0 away win over Melbourne Heart last week and will be buoyed by the fact they were able to keep a clean sheet despite being tested for much of the 90 minutes at AAMI Park.

Gold Coast showed that they have plenty of character with a fighting 3-2 win over Central Coast Mariners in Gosford on Sunday even though they had a number of first choice players on the sidelines.

They will be boosted by the return of striker Bruce Djite but that is offset by the ankle injury to goalkeeper Glen Moss who was in fine form against the Mariners.

But at Hindmarsh Stadium, the Reds are very tough to beat and the return og right-back Daniel Mullen and key midfielder Paul Reid to the squad will make Rini Coolenâ€™s selection decisions very tough.

An extremely difficult match to pick but there is no big drama if both sides gain a single point so a draw may be the way to go.

Verdict: 1-1 draw

Adelaide United vs. Gold Coast UnitedDate: Friday, 26 November 2010Venue: Hindmarsh Stadium, AdelaideLocal kick-off: 7:30pm (8.00pm AEDT)Referee: Peter GreenHead-to-Head: All matches (played 4): Adelaide United wins 0, Gold Coast United wins 1 (3 draws)Match facts:-Dino Djulbic is set to make his 50th Hyundai A-League appearance.
- Gold Coast United will be aiming to maintain their record of being the only club yet to lose an away match this season.